Thursday, 6 October 2011

Göktürk Khaganate

Empire Göktürk KhaganateOrigin AsiaYear of Peak Size 557Duration 195 yearsStart Date 552End Date 747Reason for End Civil WarDescription The Kök Türks, Göktürks were a nomadic confederation of medieval Inner Asia. Known in Chinese sources as 突厥 (Modern Chinese: Pinyin: Tūjué, Wade-Giles: T'u-chüeh, Middle Chinese (Guangyun): dʰuət-kĭwɐt), the Göktürks under the leadership of Bumin Qaghan (d. 552) and his sons succeeded the Rouran as the main power in the region and took hold of the lucrative Silk Road trade.

About 550 AD, Bumin Qaghan and his sons, with the help of the Chinese Wei kingdom, conquered the Rouran and took over as the main rulers of Central Asia. Today, historians call Bumin Qaghan's people the Göktürks. As their name suggests, the Göktürks were Turkish people, and they spoke a Turkic language, not Indo-European, though their empire included both Turkic people like the Uighurs and people, and even rulers, of other ethnicities. The Göktürks used their empire and their friendly alliance with China to get control of the Silk Road and the trade between the Sassanians and Wei China, which made them rich.